Suggestions on a location to kick-start my creativity again... Please...??

Good evening all,

Hope everyone's keeping well, I've missed being able to pop in here regularly and keep up with what's going on!

Well, I'm after some advice, I know this is a very subjective topic, but I thought I'd throw it open and see what inspiration comes my way...

I'm organising to get a week away to spend focused on photography and re-igniting my creativity. I know I know, a week is pretty lame considering I used to spend a month or so at a time in the outback, but I'll take what I can get! I've got family coming to relieve me of responsibilities back here, so I want to make the most of it.

What I'm hoping to get from you all is some inspiration as to where to head, keeping in mind it will probably be around July. All my usual favourites are a bit out of reach with only a week up my sleeve. I have always wanted to head up to Mungo (it was going to be my last adventure before letting my 4wd go a few years ago, but never eventuated), but being the middle of winter I don't know how accessible it'll be. Another thought, I have always tended to head inland (red dust is in my blood, after all), but I do love the coast, so maybe a rocky, stormy beach somewhere could be what I need to get going (partly inspired by one of Shane's pics from the last Melbourne meetup).

I'm open to all suggestions, some considerations to keep in mind: Vehicle based camping would be preferred, as nice as walk-in sites would be (I'm thinking the GOW), a weeks worth of supplies, on top of the essentials (ie, film, changing bag etc :P ) might be a bit much for me. Plus, I like to be able to nip into town for a counter-ie at least once). I'm on a bit of a budget too, so I'll try to keep accommodation to a minimum cost, but after usually paying a big fat nothing, I know pretty much anything down the coast will be a shock, especially since it will probably fall on the first week of the school holidays too...

Great post, I look forward to reading answers (although not the ones specific to the area you're mentioning).
Creativity is somewhat orthogonal to finding the right place and time for a good landscape shot, though, IMHO.

I remember a photographer whose creativity was to bring a chair (the exact same old beat-up chair) everywhere she went, and then taking a shot of the chair in the middle of forest/train station/hospital/desert/fields. I thought that made a very creative series.

I suppose you should start questioning your plan : what if I concentrated on a specific color, specific angle of view, close-ups or any other technique ? What if I shot myself in every picture (seen series like that) ?

There is also a saying that constraints nurture creativity, which I am a believer of, but I could not give a decent example of the top of my head.

All in all, I guess it helps if you bring some literature and not just the gear. Just my $0.02.

I did Mungo by car camping in winter a few years ago. Accessibility was not a problem. Only the achingly cold and frosty mornings were a challenge. I thought a week at Mungo was too long so I went down the road, turned right, and spent the other half of the week at Wilpena Pound in South Australia; more cold and frosty landscapes but truly dramatic as well! And do the Cazneaux Tree if you go down that way.

Photography, the word itself, invented and defined by its author Sir John.F.W.Herschel, 14 March 1839 at the Royal Society, Somerset House, London. Quote "...Photography or the application of the Chemical rays of light to the purpose of pictorial representation,..". unquote.

Having a week is ok but you don't want to spend 4 days of it driving, I would look at Thurra Inlet, got some ripping sand dunes behind it and a lighthouse,lots of coastal views. You can still drive to a couple of other spot from there.
A word on Mungo, had a fried just get back a said that the walls area is all fenced of and technical nobody is allowed in without a guide between they found a bone..
Flinders Ranges would be high on my list too

The outback would be a sure bet this side of winter; cool to cold but drier than down south. The colours of the outback are far removed in winter from summer: it turns green and you know as well as I do that Vaudeville Velvia just loves playing with greens!

I will be in the outback beyond Broken Hill and then up to Quorn (south side of Flinders Ranges) and down to Burra in September, one month. Near BH early on, staying on two stations ('Belmont Station', outside Silverton, and 'Eldee Station', on the Mundi Mundi Plain). The former Station has a prop of interest that was used in 1980s 'Four XXXX' beer commericals which I want to incorporate into star trails.

Meanwhile, the Otways are getting delightfully wet at the moment (Forrest flooded yesterday!) — bodes well for the very long and boring dry that left many beauty spots parched. Planning a solo walk to A.B. Falls and Staircase Falls (scrubby circuit, re-taped and routed earlier this month) early-June if it is of interest to you, with a crash at the Forrest Brewery, but expect to get wet and be covered in sticky clay from Curtis "Track". Bring skis. Better than walking...

Creativity can end up in the doledrums if you don't frequently get out to be stimulated. Must always remain active with something to do in photography — even if it's buying cameras: a natty trick I picked up from Boots when times are quiet . "You never can have too many." Hmmm. Who said that??

I didn't know you spent time in the outback. That's interesting. Pity it's so far away. You'd need to drive for 7-8 hours to free up enough time for the rest of the week to weep and wail and wander through the ghostly open nothingness.

Last edited by Poisson Du Jour; 05-16-2013 at 05:18 PM. Click to view previous post history.

Steve, you could come west, i've been going into the south west my whole life but for shooting quite a lot recently. Not sure if you have a lot of them in the east, but Ive been spending some time in local unregistered caves (just make sure you tell someone where you plan to go). Shooting long exposure or wide open, light in the natural caves can bare interesting results. Failing the caves over there, coastal and farmland is always a go. Getting a cow to sit still when you try to get right up close is actually very difficult.

I hope you manage to rekindle your love. It is a love that I wish more had.

i own a house at Sandy Point, near Wilsons Prom, happy to rent it out...

i recently went on a solo adventure, traveled along the Great Ocean Road, up to Adelaide the to Uluru.
all up 11 days and over 6000kms.. few photos here
still havnt developed all the film i shot yet.

James, I'm surprised you could get yourself to 'The Breakaways' outside Coober Pedy; atmospheric, 'out there' and strikingly beautiful at sunset, we learnt that private vehicles were not permitted there (from the quite strict aboriginal custodians) so we were forced to go with a commercial tour. This wasn't too bad (we did have access to a restricted area, which looked no more remarkable than an ancient mullock heap, but was described as a burial mound (!!) ), but it was rather too "Hollywood" for my liking: picnic tables, white table cloths, bone china, champagne and candles. And RUSHED! I had enough time to get four (one roll) of 6x17cm images at the time, pack it all away, file into the bus only to demand a kilometre later that the bus stop when a blood-red Moon arose over the plain! The others were grumbling and cursing because they were not photographers (they only came along for the grog!). Maybe the rules have been changed or relaxed since we went there (June 2011). It would be an ethereal, specular place to camp, but I don't see that happening.

Not surprised to see the disappointing view of Erskine Falls; it's been extremely dry for too long, even by Otways standard, and thousands of people have had the gall to complain long and loud to Lorne Visitor Information Centre that "those falls are not flowing at all!", lol!! So funny!
But most falls are now picking up and will continue to build flow with more regular rain and run-off now.

I recognise many other places in your folio of your travels! PS: Get a spririt level. And don't leave home without it.

• Evening light, 'The Breakaways'

Last edited by Poisson Du Jour; 05-19-2013 at 07:33 PM. Click to view previous post history.

James, I'm surprised you could get yourself to 'The Breakaways' outside Coober Pedy; atmospheric, 'out there' and strikingly beautiful at sunset, we learnt that private vehicles were not permitted there (from the quite strict aboriginal custodians) so we were forced to go with a commercial tour. This wasn't too bad (we did have access to a restricted area, which looked no more remarkable than an ancient mullock heap, but was described as a burial mound (!!) ), but it was rather too "Hollywood" for my liking: picnic tables, white table cloths, bone china, champagne and candles. And RUSHED! I had enough time to get four (one roll) of 6x17cm images at the time, pack it all away, file into the bus only to demand a kilometre later that the bus stop when a blood-red Moon arose over the plain! The others were grumbling and cursing because they were not photographers (they only came along for the grog!). Maybe the rules have been changed or relaxed since we went there (June 2011). It would be an ethereal, specular place to camp, but I don't see that happening.

Not surprised to see the disappointing view of Erskine Falls; it's been extremely dry for too long, even by Otways standard, and thousands of people have had the gall to complain long and loud to Lorne Visitor Information Centre that "those falls are not flowing at all!", lol!! So funny!
But most falls are now picking up and will continue to build flow with more regular rain and run-off now.

I recognise many other places in your folio of your travels! PS: Get a spirit level. And don't leave home without it.

 Evening light, 'The Breakaways'

yeah i just drove there.. even drove down to the Dingo Fence. i didnt read any signs, so cant say whether i was supposed to or not.. ha
unfortunately, i was only there mid afternoon, so the light was a bit flat and uninteresting. i have a half dozen rolls of film to finish scanning, so hope i have some more keepers to add to my site.
i dont think im allowed to post photos of Uluru either. oops..
i know what you mean about needing a spirit level, im trying to get better, but occasionally rush myself. my 4x5 and 6x17 have levels, and i sometimes use the straighten tool in PS if its really on the piss.
i didnt mind Erskine Falls too much, not much water, yes, but still nice. Triplet Falls though, now THAT was a let down. could barely see the falls.

if anyone finds themselves in the Gippsland area, feel free to give me a yell if you want some company.